Third Committee
13 October 2006
Statement by Ms Nicola Hill, New Zealand Mission to the UN, on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand
Item 63a: Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Child
(check against delivery)
Mr Chairman,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Canada, Australia and New Zealand have an enduring commitment to making life better for children and young people. If we want a future that is sustainable, prosperous and secure, we must create a world where children can reach their full potential and where they are treated as human beings in dignity and with rights. We must move beyond providing services to meet basic needs, to supporting the whole of the child’s development and their active participation in their families, communities and States.
Canada, Australia and New Zealand once again reaffirm our support for the rights of the child. The comprehensive Convention on the Rights of the Child, agreed more than fifteen years ago, is now part of the fabric of our societies and must remain strongly promoted in our work, domestically and internationally. We welcome the increase in States parties to the treaty over the past year, and reiterate our hope that the goal of universal ratification will soon be achieved. And we acknowledge the work of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and UNICEF in particular in promoting and making real these commitments.
For the past four years we have raised our concern that the United Nations continues to lack an adequate framework to promote and debate children’s rights. The reform of the UN and establishment of the Human Rights Council provides us with an opportunity that should not be missed. We must look at new approaches beyond the omnibus resolution on the rights of the child and we must also open up the UN fora to the contributions of children, and their representatives.
The launch of the report on violence against children by the Independent Expert Professor Sergio Pinheiro is a major step forward in our work on the rights of the child here at the United Nations. This much-anticipated report demonstrates that violence against children is a global phenomenon affecting all States, impoverishing our families, communities and countries. We commend the process of developing the report, in particular the contribution of children, and we support full consideration of its recommendations. We also support action to ensure that this important issue remains at the forefront of the UN agenda.
We commend progress on the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1612 on children in conflict. We welcome the recommendations on the Democratic Republic of Congo of the Security Council Working Group on children and armed conflict and encourage the Security Council to take action on them. We also welcome the Secretary-General's report on children and armed conflict in the Sudan and urge the Working Group to make similarly concrete recommendations.
More broadly, CANZ encourages the Council to apply targeted and graduated measures against parties to conflict who continue to commit atrocities against children, and in doing so to use all the tools at its disposal, such as mandating peacekeeping missions and the naming of all violators. The implementation of Security Council Resolution 1612 is critical to bridging the gap between international norms and the grim reality still faced by too many children caught in armed conflicts.
Mr Chairman,
The General Assembly will very shortly adopt a new Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which will be a milestone in the realization of the rights of children with disabilities on an equal basis with others. This treaty includes a specific provision on the rights of the child and will, we hope, help create the kind of inclusive society where the potential of all our children can be realized. The treaty will ensure that children with disabilities are able to enjoy their right to participate fully in family, cultural and social life. We call on all member States to sign and ratify this new treaty, once adopted, as soon as possible.
I thank you.